How Do You Still Love Me? Kotetsu x Barnaby
by Kitanrum
Summary: Barnaby wonders how Kotetsu still loves him but screws up mentioning Tomoe. What'll Kotetsu do?


Kotetsu and Barnaby sat together in their apartment. It had been two months since their wedding and about three since Kotetsu had moved in. The apartment truly felt like a combination of both their life styles. Kotetsu was glad that Barnaby welcomed his changes to the apartment to make it feel more home-y and less like just a place to live in. They were curled up in each other's arms, their eyes on the large television screens before them watching a movie. They'd already seen it around five times; it was just an excuse to cuddle and relax now.

Barnaby shifted around slightly, looking up at Kotetsu. He might be the taller of the two, but he found it comforting to curl up to his husband's chest and watch a movie. He never told the brunette, but he liked how after a few moments of being curled up Kotetsu would start running his hand through his hair. He would always feel the others strong fingers gently caressing his silky blonde hair, sometimes even playing with one of his curls. Kotetsu always seemed to find some way to make him fall deeper in love.

Tonight, however, the blonde began to think if he had the same effect on Kotetsu. This man was always more than romantic when they were together, always doing small things for Barnaby just because he felt like doing something nice at that moment. And what had he, Barnaby, done for Kotetsu? Left him once before they were engaged, shot him twice in the same day and then left to take a break without being around to help with his recovery. How could Kotetsu still even love him?

Barnaby sat up slightly, moving away from Kotetsu to look at the side. "Hmm? You okay, Bunny? Not sleepy are you?" He heard Kotetsu ask as he came closer. Barnaby closed his eyes, feeling Kotetsu's lips and his beard brush up against his neck. The air left his lungs for a few moments, completely in bliss as his husband assaulted his neck gently. Green eyes shot open suddenly and he moved away.

"Uh… Are you alright Bunny?" Kotetsu asked, raising a brow. His gold-speckled amber eyes looked over inquisitively at the blonde who just stared out the large glass window that faced the rest of the Gold Stage. "Bunny?" Kotetsu asked again about to move closer to Barnaby's side when he felt a hand on his chest keep him away. Emerald green eyes were looking deep into his now. "Are you feeling alright?" He asked again.

Barnaby was trying to search deep into Kotetsu's eyes but the man was still an enigma after two years. "Why do you still love me?" The blond demanded, his voice shaking. He saw the others confusion at the question and repeated, "Why do you still love me? How can you still love me, Kotetsu?" Barnaby demanded, his hand beginning to shake a little. He retracted away from Kotetsu and stood up. His arms wrapped around himself a bit as he walked to the window. "I've… All I've ever been is horrible to you… How do you still love me? D-Don't you ever wish that… That Tomoe was still alive so that you could be with her instead of me?" The blond said, eyes wide. _Oh God, I can't believe I brought her up!_

Barnaby spun around and shook his head. "I-I'm sorry! I-I didn't mea-." He started.

"Shut up." Kotetsu said curtly, cutting him off. The brunette was staring at the television, a frown creased over his lips. He said nothing for a while, though he did sigh in frustration and pushed his hair back slightly. "Bunny, I've told you before that what happened happened… We don't need to keep talking about it anymore… I already accepted your apology for all of those things and I'm still here, aren't I? If you want to know how or why, then the answer's simple; because I do." Kotetsu said, looking over at the blonde. He glanced away almost immediately, realizing he was a little bit more firm that he had wanted to sound. Again he sighed. "I'm sorry. Please, just come back over here. We've had enough troubles… Don't you think we both deserve to be happy now?" Kotetsu said apologetically.

Barnaby still hesitated, but went back to cuddling up to the others chest. The two remained quiet for about fifteen minutes when Barnaby spoke up again. "Did…. Did you ever fight with her this much?" The blond asked quietly, not wanting to look up at Kotetsu.

Kotetsu stared at the television for a few more minutes before leaning down to kiss Barnaby's hair gently. He smiled against the others hair and closed his eyes. "No… We were usually on the same page… When never actually fought… Maybe once or twice? But it was before we even moved in together after high school. Every decision we made, we did it together. Like when I became a Hero… It was only because Tomoe pushed for me to apply that I did it." Kotetsu said as he thought back.

Barnaby frowned, hearing this, looking away to the side a bit. "You really loved her… Didn't you?" He asked quietly.

"I still do… Tomoe will always be the love of my life." Kotetsu said, he felt Barnaby tense up and laughed. His hand came up to turn the others chin up slightly, forcing the other to look up at him. "But so will you. Tomoe was perfect in her own way… Just like you're perfect in yours. Bunny, I love you I really do. Your every flaw helps to make you perfect. Yes, we fight a lot, but it's only natural when you have two different people like us together. I'm not saying I like to fight, but I like being able to see that you have a different opinion. If you ever actually tried to be like Tomoe and copy the relationship we had, I would be upset. I love you just the way you are and I will yell at you until I'm blue in the face to help you understand that if I have to. Like I said… We're both two pretty broken guys… It's only natural we finally got a break, don't you think?" Kotetsu's hand now rested on Barnaby's cheek stroking it gently, a small smile on his lips.

Barnaby always melted when Kotetsu spoke to him like this. His words were always just so true and his voice was always so soothing to listen to. He found himself lost in the pools of amber the other called eyes. Slowly, he leaned up to kiss Kotetsu, closing his eyes. The blond lingered for a few moments, reluctant to pull away from the other too much, but doing so anyway. "I love you… Kotetsu." He whispered gently.

"I love you too… Mr. Kaburagi-Brooks." Kotetsu said, smiling as he used their new shared name. As if on cue, the married couple laughed, holding each other close. They settled back into their TV watching pose, drifting off into sleep once the screens were turned off and all they had were the city lights and themselves.


End file.
